Typing stealth: a review of the CODE Keyboard

Coding Horror designs a keyboard for those of us who never stop typing.

Two and a half years ago, I fell in love with a mechanical keyboard. It was comfortable to use but profoundly loud, to the point of being obnoxious. It was audible across rooms and through walls and into the night—not to me, with my headphones on, but to most living, breathing souls within a 50-yard radius.

Jeff Atwood of Coding Horror appears to know the dilemma of perpetual typists like myself. We love our mechanical keyboards with Cherry MX switches, but they sound off like so many M16 rifles. One of the leading features of his new CODE keyboard is that it is “quiet,” but it packs a handful of other quirks meant to streamline usage for heavy duty users.

The sound of Not Even Close To Silence

The keyboard is a pretty spare design, with translucent legends on the keys that allow individual-key backlights to shine through. The body is weighted to keep it from shifting around on your desk, and this one is hefty enough to stay put through minor earthquakes: the 87/88-key version is two pounds and the 104/105-key version we reviewed is 2.42 pounds.

A single microUSB-to-USB cord connects and powers the keyboard. My usual keyboard has two supplementary USB ports that I missed after swapping in the CODE keyboard.

Enlarge/ The USB cord threads most easily straight out the back, but a series of channels allow users to thread off to either side along the top edge or off the left or right side.

Atwood designed the CODE keyboard as the answer to all of the touch-screen typing we now do. Touch-screen keyboards have their place, but for an honest day’s worth of typing in the life of a writer, programmer, or even just a heavy-duty Internet user, capacitive glass (or even rubber domes or scissor switches) simply will not do.

The CODE keyboard uses Cherry MX Clear mechanical switches, which are stiff compared to the more common Cherry MX Blues and Browns. Because of this, the keyboard somewhat mimics the feel of a rubber dome keyboard like the ever-popular Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard.

Enlarge/ One of the Cherry MX Clear switches, accompanied by the individual backlight bulb for the key.

But the mechanical switches are superior to the rubber dome switches in two ways. First, they activate before they are pressed all the way down (you can feel a tactile bump at this actuation point). Your finger doesn’t have to “bottom out” the key in its well in order to get the key press to register.

Second, they are less susceptible to aging and do not become harder to strike over time as soon as rubber dome switches do. The average lifespan of rubber domes are around five million presses, while mechanical switches go 10-20 million. If the switches are used right, a keyboard like this should, in theory, both prevent fatigue and sustain a longer lifespan than a cheaper rubber dome keyboard.

I am now a longtime user of a mechanical keyboard with Cherry MX Blue switches, an Adesso MKB-135B that won my heart after it appeared in a video I did about keyboards a couple of years ago. It’s not the fanciest of models and is branded a “gaming” keyboard when, in fact, it uses switches that are actually considered optimal for typing as opposed to gaming (Cherry MX Browns are the reigning champs there, though these are all matters of preference more than anything).

To my Blue-accustomed hands, the Clears felt pretty stiff. At first this seemed like a downside, surely it would result in more fatigue than usual. But a problem I often have with my Blues keyboard is that I don’t type delicately enough to distinguish between the activation point and bottoming out. Half the time I’m hammering away and I strike the key all the way down and move on. Sometimes I can maintain the featherlike touch required to take full advantage, but it’s a balance that I am sometimes too impassioned about pants or Google+ to maintain.

Enlarge/ A full bottoming-out depression (front) versus an activation depression (behind) on the CODE keyboard.

The stiffer switches of the Clears do a better job at preventing me from bottoming out. I worry that over time my fingers will work up enough enthusiasm to start abusing these switches just as badly as they do my Blues, but for the time being I’m maintaining a healthy balance of pressure.

The real downside to Cherry MX Blues is their volume. They are incredibly, incredibly loud, totally not suitable for an office or really any space that doesn’t resemble a bunker. Sources who prefer to remain nameless tell me my usual keyboard can be heard from outside my apartment. This may play a role in why rubber dome keyboards proliferate in offices over mechanical or even scissor-switch keyboards.

Cherry MX Clear switches, on the other hand, have a tactile bump, but they are not “clicky” like the Blues or Browns. The Clears even sound like a rubber dome keyboard.

The CODE keyboard version we have is part of Atwood’s first production run, so problems are to be expected to an extent. When I removed the keyboard from the box, I noticed that a thin metal hook under the backspace key had come undone, leading the key to be partially detached and rattle when I pressed it. Reseating that metal hook took a solid 20 minutes of struggling with a spudger and the included key-puller before everything was in place.

The key puller is a nice inclusion, as it makes the keyboard much easier to disassemble and clean. This process otherwise involves prying the keys off their switches to somewhat unpredictable results.

One of the features of the keyboard is six-key rollover (press six keys simultaneously and they will all register). This doesn’t match the 10-key rollover of some gaming models, but I didn’t run up against the limit in my typing experience.

The keyboard has a set of DIP switches on the back that once configured, allow you to switch the keyboard layout on the hardware level (instructions aren’t included for this, but you have Google and some thousands of support forums at hand). The keyboard also arranges its media keys differently: rather than being along the function row, they are the secondary functions of the Insert/Home/Page Up Cluster, with the Menu key functioning as the Fn key. This configuration is operable with one hand without a lot of strain.

At $149.99, the CODE keyboard is on the expensive side for a mechanical model (my own was around $80; Das Keyboards are $120-130; keyboards with even more offbeat switches like Topres can run upwards of $200). This isn’t the new Keyboard Everyone Needs, but its considered design touches and features will no doubt meet the approval of a certain cadre of very, very active typists.

190 Reader Comments

I was very intrigued by this keyboard. I'm a gamer/programmer and I'm currently using the Corsair K95 with Cherry Reds, and it's pretty awesome, I wont lie. But this keyboard interested me more specifically for my work environment. Maybe I'll wait for a few iterations (and potentially a price drop) to pick one up. Great article!

Good writeup of the details, but what is the authors final opinion? Is it recommended? Will she be switching to one?

(edit: here's the Ars take on the Das keyboard: "Though it's hard to avoid high subjectivity in the matter, there's something distinct about the feel of the Das Keyboard that you just won't find anywhere else. Sure, there are cheaper keyboards that rival the Das in simplicity, and more expensive ones that outdo it in functionality, but none feel as good as the Professional. Your hands will come to crave it. "

Are the key caps movable? I can see that they can be removed and replaced, but on some keyboards, the different rows of caps are shaped differently. As someone who types dvorak (and makes do with qwerty key caps), the ability to re-cap a keyboard and set its layout at the hardware level would be a pretty big bonus.

These are, I believe, just customized WASD keyboards under the hood. I know they're being sold as their own brand however as the site points out, it was co-developed with Weyman Kwong of WASD. That said, you can easily design your own with the same specs plus more customization through WASD. The only thing I'm not sure about is the backlit keys which are a pretty cool addition. With regards to the dip switches, I'm willing to bet you can get support for them through WASD.

-- edit --

Yeah, this keyboard is sold directly through WASD if you follow the purchase link on the site.

I muted the QWERTY region and spacebar on my Cherry Brown Filco, but left W,A,S,D, ALT and the numbers out. A half-ass compromise between gaming and typing in the presence of others.

Another thing I noticed is that when you're editing photos or videos, the mouse can be more annoying than the keyboard, especially those with small side keys. Maybe an article about mice in the future?

With few exceptions, I feel comfortable saying that OOB keyboards (and mice and headphones) are inferior to what a savvy consumer can find on the "aftermarket".

I agree, the bundled-in mice/keyboards found within a typical store-bought PC are designed to fill the specific need of having a mouse and keyboard, and not much else. Is this good enough for the majority of people buying store-bought PCs? Probably. However, I think the purpose of this article wasn't to say your base keyboard was inferior, but to demonstrate the capabilities of a more high-end item for someone who may be looking for more.

With few exceptions, I feel comfortable saying that OOB keyboards (and mice and headphones) are inferior to what a savvy consumer can find on the "aftermarket".

That just seems to reasonable to me. The opposite view is that his keyboard is not inferior to any aftermarket model, which is to say the keyboard that came bundled with his computer when he bought it is the best keyboard ever made.

I have typed on average 10 hours a day for the past 30 years. I never really had much of a preference once I got used to a keyboard but maybe I didn't take note of it. Short of willing the characters onto the screen, I consider most of them basically the same. My biggest problems are sticky keys and the letters wearing off the surface in that order. I wish there was a way to recycle them. These days I go through three, fairly cheap, wireless keyboards per year.

It's hinted at in the article but not explained why bottoming out a key press is a Bad Thing. Why would bottoming out be bad?

It leads to faster fatigue. I've seen claims of RSI, but never followed up.

I tend too keybash non tactile/clicky keyboards, having grown up on Model Ms. When I use them my hands get tired pretty fast.

My home keyboard is a Ducky 9008G2 with Cherry browns (moderate weight, quiet, tactile), and it's a much more comfortable keyboard because it's hard to bottom out, and I naturally stop depressing the switch when it clicks.

My work keyboard has ALPS simplified whites, which are a bit heavier and both tactile and clicky. I don't like it as much as the Cherry switches, but it's a considerable improvement, in my opinion, over falling-dome keyboards.

It's hinted at in the article but not explained why bottoming out a key press is a Bad Thing. Why would bottoming out be bad?

Bottoming out in itself is not bad. Having to struggle against high resistance to actuate a key is bad for your fingers, and there are many rubber domes that do require you to press down into the mush to actuate.

I think that the point of the Cherry MX Clears is that the key actuates mid-travel with sharply increasing force afterwards. Some people think that that makes the keys feel mushy, I think that they cushion the fingers - as you don't have to push down into the mush.It can take a while to get used to typing on keyboards with this switch. Most people seem to not like it at all in the beginning and me neither. Now that switch is my favourite, together with Cherry MX Blue.

The Cherry MX Clear is not very common among mechanical keyboards. There is a variation of the Ducky Shine that also has MX Clear switches and backlighting, but it does not have hardware Dvorak/Colemak support.WASD Keyboards v2 was developed together with the "Code" - it is bascially the same keyboard without backlighting, and with more switch options.The thing that is most uncommon with the Code and WASD v2 is that they are available in MX Clear and "tenkeyless" form factor (no numeric keypad).

I have typed on average 10 hours a day for the past 30 years. I never really had much of a preference once I got used to a keyboard but maybe I didn't take note of it. Short of willing the characters onto the screen, I consider most of them basically the same. My biggest problems are sticky keys and the letters wearing off the surface in that order. I wish there was a way to recycle them. These days I go through three, fairly cheap, wireless keyboards per year.

Mechanicals would last longer. Much, much longer.

I used to be about the same; I've had this Ducky for 3 years now, and the only problem I've had is chatter on the O key. Given that it's a mechanical keyboard, I need a ~$0.30 keyswitch and a few minutes with a fine-tipped soldering iron to fix it. (The iron I ordered went out of stock, and I haven't gotten around too getting one. )

As a Dvorak user, I recap the keyboard as soon as it is out of the box. Most times that means vandalizing the J,U, H and F keys as manufacturers prevent moving the home-keys with those raised markers by making them with different fittings to the rest of the keys - for whatever reason I have no idea. On my current keyboard that involved scratching off the lettering. Not a huge problem as I mostly touch type.

Having back-lit key lettering is pretty much useless to touch-typists and would stop me doing my vandal trick.

The keyboard has a set of DIP switches on the back that once configured, allowing you to switch the keyboard layout on the hardware level (instructions aren’t included for this, but you have Google and some thousands of support forums at hand)

For modes you can choose between QWERTY, MAC (same as QWERTY but command and option buttons are switched around), Dvorak and Colemak. You also can swap Caps Lock and Ctrl, make the Scroll Lock key disable the OS keys, completely disable the OS keys, etc.

My biggest problems are sticky keys and the letters wearing off the surface in that order. I wish there was a way to recycle them. These days I go through three, fairly cheap, wireless keyboards per year.

Have you tried using 2 coats of clear nail polish on your keys? I saw that tip on an Amazon.com review years ago, and tried it - and my keyboard has lasted me for 3 years now with only a few keys just starting to show wear. And that's typing 4-6 hours a day easy.

As to sticky keys, I'm still trying find a decent tip to solve or prevent that....

These are, I believe, just customized WASD keyboards under the hood. I know they're being sold as their own brand however as the site points out, it was co-developed with Weyman Kwong of WASD. That said, you can easily design your own with the same specs plus more customization through WASD. The only thing I'm not sure about is the backlit keys which are a pretty cool addition. With regards to the dip switches, I'm willing to bet you can get support for them through WASD.

-- edit --

Yeah, this keyboard is sold directly through WASD if you follow the purchase link on the site.

Are these WASD keyboards also quiet, which appears to be the big selling point of the CODE keyboard here?

Loudness is the second barrier to entry for me moving to a new keyboard (the first barrier being the price).

I have typed on average 10 hours a day for the past 30 years. I never really had much of a preference once I got used to a keyboard but maybe I didn't take note of it. Short of willing the characters onto the screen, I consider most of them basically the same. My biggest problems are sticky keys and the letters wearing off the surface in that order. I wish there was a way to recycle them. These days I go through three, fairly cheap, wireless keyboards per year.

Mechanicals would last longer. Much, much longer.

I used to be about the same; I've had this Ducky for 3 years now, and the only problem I've had is chatter on the O key. Given that it's a mechanical keyboard, I need a ~$0.30 keyswitch and a few minutes with a fine-tipped soldering iron to fix it. (The iron I ordered went out of stock, and I haven't gotten around too getting one. )

I don't know how much longer, that seems like an exceptionally extreme case (routinely wearing out a keyboard after at most 1,200 hours -- typing for 10 hours a day multiplied by 365 days in a year divided by 3 keyboards per year -- of use?) My first instinct is to check just how they're using the keyboard and what's breaking before recommending they splash out on a mechanical model.

My biggest problems are sticky keys and the letters wearing off the surface in that order. I wish there was a way to recycle them. These days I go through three, fairly cheap, wireless keyboards per year.

I don't mean to give you a hard time (if you've found a brand of wireless keyboards that you like typing on, more power to you) but...

If you spend that much time typing, why do you need to see the printed letters on the keycaps?

Are these WASD keyboards also quiet, which appears to be the big selling point of the CODE keyboard here?

Loudness is the second barrier to entry for me moving to a new keyboard (the first barrier being the price).

The WASD keyboards can be configured with the same switches this keyboard uses (Cherry MX Clears), or others. They are completely customizable. You can also add dampener o-rings to soften/quieten the keyboard even more.

I have a unicomp model m clone that's great, but the noise is just too much. I've been looking at a WASD with quiet(er) switches and maybe o-rings but haven't pulled the trigger. I've also looked at the DAS keyboard but they seem to have changed OEM's and there are a lot of complaints about the space bar on them, and they're not quiet (they use Cherry MX blues). Right now I'm using an Apple keyboard but I really hate it. The dip switches on the WASD (and this keyboard) can be changed to re-map to the mac layout rather than being required to re-map the keys in software. You can also get the keys labeled appropriately via the WASD customization.

The MS keyboard addresses layout and case design. To get the benefits of the keyboard being reviewed here, have your MS keyboard refitted with Cherry MX key switches. It is the typing experience rather than the layout experience that is being reviewed.

My biggest problems are sticky keys and the letters wearing off the surface in that order. I wish there was a way to recycle them. These days I go through three, fairly cheap, wireless keyboards per year.

I don't mean to give you a hard time (if you've found a brand of wireless keyboards that you like typing on, more power to you) but...

If you spend that much time typing, why do you need to see the printed letters on the keycaps?

I mostly touch type so I technically don't need the letters/numbers but it's like a timer, a cue to replace it. By that time the sticky keys are a problem. I make and eat a lot of homemade fruit pie. I wonder if it's corroding the keyboard.

These are, I believe, just customized WASD keyboards under the hood. I know they're being sold as their own brand however as the site points out, it was co-developed with Weyman Kwong of WASD. That said, you can easily design your own with the same specs plus more customization through WASD. The only thing I'm not sure about is the backlit keys which are a pretty cool addition. With regards to the dip switches, I'm willing to bet you can get support for them through WASD.

-- edit --

Yeah, this keyboard is sold directly through WASD if you follow the purchase link on the site.

Are these WASD keyboards also quiet, which appears to be the big selling point of the CODE keyboard here?

Loudness is the second barrier to entry for me moving to a new keyboard (the first barrier being the price).

You posted too soon. A look at the website would tell you that you that can choose silent or ear shattering with a couple of others in between. There is also a video where you can hear the various types in operation.

I would buy this if they made a localized one with a few special keys, but the likelihood of making it localized for a market where if they are lucky would sell ~10 isn't exactly big...

I'm sure I could order a bunch of keys and get it "right" in software but still waaay to much guessing and work compared to buying a slightly less great keyboard witch is already right since they do sell localized ducky, filco etc...

Still interested though much thanks to the MX clears and DIP switches....